Infinite Stratos: Exceed Charge
by Tethriot
Summary: A veteran of battle is forced to fight a game he (probably) can't win. He's going to end up leaving either in a body bag, or worse, A HAREM! CHAPTER 03 COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1: Prelude & Prologue

**Chapter One: Prelude & Prologue.**

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧ ɸΦɸ ΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

**Tokyo, Japan. 2003.**

Smart Brain. A multi-trillion yen Japanese conglomerate created in the late 1980's which took the country by storm after a series of lucrative takeovers during the "Lost Decade" of the late 1990's. A household name in its origin country, as well as worldwide, Smart Brain's peak was in the early twenty-first century, where their logo was ubiquitous with high quality goods. It took the world by storm, and nearly every food, electronics, production, construction, real estate, and medical company was bought and absorbed into the massive corporation to advance the betterment of humanity.

Or so it was said.

At the same time, deep-space exploration was a technological industry that was beginning to attract more and more of the most brilliant researchers in the field at the time. Though Smart Brain had assets in that field, funding for it wasn't necessarily the top company priority at the time. They had other, more pressing interests.

Biotechnology and genetic engineering for one. High strength tensiles and superconductive materials for another.

Perhaps if they paid more attention things wouldn't have gone the way they did.

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

**Tokyo, Japan. Unknown time, 2003-2004.**

The fourth year of the new millennium was rife with tragedy for the citizens of Tokyo, Japan. A deadly series of murders occurred for that year, sometimes every day of the week. Other than the fact so many people had died, was the circumstances surrounding their leave from the world. Unknown to most of the populace was that nearly every murder had resulted in the victims turning to ash. The media, fueled by the lobbyists, had swept it under the rug, declaring the strange happenings as an urban legend, that "there was nothing to be afraid of". At the same time, the Smart Brain company had started its famous " 'Life is frail. Life is limited. So, why don't you think about true life? Be smart! True life is your start!' " campaign.

But urban legends had a sliver of truth present. And the people of Tokyo knew that as well.

The men saw strange beings. _**They**_ were clad in gray, like _**they **_were carved out of stone to as monsters of another age. _**They **_were terrifying and beautiful. People whom _**they **_killed were consumed by a blue flame before they turned into ash. But the public had not known _**their **_name, preferring to call them beasts and monsters instead.

_**They were the Orphenoch.**_

Men, women, and children throughout Tokyo everywhere had been wrought with fear. And who could blame them? These beasts were disguised like you or I. These beasts consumed men in their flames indiscriminately. These beasts would walk in the light of day without fear of retaliation.

But the plight of men had not gone unheeded.

The guardians of humanity had arrived. Red, yellow and blue. Circle, triangle, and cross. Dressed in pitch black armor, their colors adorned them; defined them.

_**They were the Kamen Riders.**_

In hushed words their deeds had been passed on. They were the heroes of Tokyo, the light in the darkness. Their fists of justice had no equal as they rode through the streets, these "Masked" Riders. In time the legend of the Riders had faded into mythology, their stories revered by young boys to emulate and imitate.

Unbeknownst to them, the heroes and villains had come from the same abyss.

The Orphenoch? Humans, reborn after death into creatures who fed on humanity to survive, some willing, some not.

The Riders? Orphenochs themselves, or at least humans who possessed some of their genes. Originally created to serve their King, their powers were stolen in order to aid man against their eventual conquest by the beasts. Sometimes stolen by others, but always returning to the same wielders.

And the origin of both? Smart Brain. The company at some time was taken over by the Orphenochs, with the intent of converting humanity into their species like they had been. The Rider Gear was built by their research facility in order to find and protect their King, the supreme being of their race whose power had the ability to evolve them even further.

But there had been a resistance. There were Orphenochs and humans that had banded together in order to foil Smart Brain's plot. Though their journey had been on a road not steady, they had accomplished their goal. Smart Brain, through their efforts, had effectively been dissolved, their assets partitioned into the original companies from which they had been assembled from. With this, their technology and methods were also exposed to the economy. What had resulted was an international free for all to claim every piece of classified tech from the ashes of the Japanese conglomerate. The only secret that had remained was the Orphenoch. Even so, the spoils of the company had reignited the fields of science, and a new age of human advancement was born. What had accompanied that, which nobody could have foresaw, was how drastic that advancement would change the world.

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

**5 Months After the Dissolution of Smart Brain Enterprises:**

2341 missiles. Two-thousand-three-hundred-forty-one missiles locked on to various regions of the Land of the Rising Sun. All 2341 were shot down by a single human sized unit, dubbed the White Knight. Every single national military were wondering what kind of advanced piece of engineering could destroy the pride and joy of their respective country's military might in less than two moves. They were furious and terrified at the same time. In their frenzy nations worldwide attempted to capture the White Knight and take its power, if not to keep it away from their enemies otherwise. The White Knight disappeared, but its story does not yet end there.

The White Knight's creator, Shinonono Tabane had brought her creation to public eyes and national parties alike. She dubbed the White Knight and her subsequent creations as I.S, or Infinite Stratos, since it was created from the fundamentals of space-exploratory powered exoskeletons. With the I.S. revealed, nations in all their wisdom had created the "Alaska Treaty", which stated that the I.S. never be used in military combat and that all technology concerning the platform be distributed to all other countries. The I.S. with all its advancements had changed the face of political, economic, and technological systems worldwide.

Perhaps the most important factor that the I.S. had affected were the male and female social dynamic. The I.S. in all of its splendor had one debilitating drawback; it could only be used by women. Not preferable, not aligned to, but completely unable to be used by anyone other than those with two "X" chromosomes. Needless to say, a gender based paradigm shift had taken place almost overnight. The world had become the feminist's utopia, where women had replaced men as the dominant sex, starting with the I.S. field and subsequently bleeding out into the rest.

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

Ten years after those seemingly unrelated events, there would be a few select people who would rock the world yet again. This time with stakes much higher than their own lives.

**Infinite Stratos: Exceed Charge.**

**Begin.**


	2. Chapter 2: Begins Night

**CHAPTER TWO: BEGINS NIGHT.**

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC  
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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

On a beautiful March spring afternoon, Orimura Ichika felt something no normal teenager should have:

Terror.

Pure abject, unadulterated terror.

Its form a large eighteen wheeler tumbling down a cross-street; colors flashing in the noon sun. Frozen in place, the fifteen year-old's mind was racing at the thought of his impending death.

_**Will I die? Will I live? Who will come for me? Who will know who I am?**_

Questions such as those quickly were swept away when the endorphins flooded his brain . The sweet rapture of adrenaline brought time to a standstill. The happy laugh of dopamine echoed through his skull. Memories of a short fifteen year life flashed alongside images of reality in all of its perceived glory.

A truck tumbled ever closer in its intended motion.

The final image was of his sister Chifuyu. It was during his tenth birthday. The eighteen year-old sister had taken time off training for the Mondo Grosso to bake a cake for the young boy. And in the light of the ten candles cast upon the two, in that moment, despite having no mother and father in his life, Orimura Ichika felt all the love and affection a child could ever need.

"_**Happy tenth birthday Ichika," she said, ruffling his hair as she did so.**_

"_**Thanks Chifuyu-nee! I love you lots!" beamed the child.**_

He could feel the cold of the steel closer to his face. Ichika's heart skipped a beat in onset for his leave. His final thoughts?

"_**Hey Chifuyu-Onee-san, sorry that I couldn't say goo-"**_

Or what would have been anyway, if not for a red blur attached to a gloved hand which seized him by the collar and heaved him with a grunt. The next parts were unknown to Ichika's waking mind, but on reflection later on it would have to be described as pain.

_**pain pain pain painpain painpain painpainpain PainPAINPAINPAINPAINPAINPPAIN….**_

_**Darkness.**_

_**Silence.**_

_**Peace**_

_**And in the darkness there was peace.**_

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

When Orimura Ichika opened his eyes he was surprised at how heaven looked like, because at that moment it suspiciously seemed like it was a riverbank. In fact it was a riverbank, albeit one slightly marred by a burning tree and sprawled motorcycle.

Blinking again, Ichika took in the whole situation for the first time. Sitting on the soil of the riverbank, there was a tree set on fire, its yet-to-bloom buds aflame with a fervor. There was a red Honda motorcycle, sprawled haphazardly on the dirt, long winding gouges where the tires had lost control. Most important of all, other than the crowd of onlookers who rushed to the scene, was the tall man in the black jacket, red helmet, palm raised and ready to-

_**SLAP!**_

"O-Ow, that hurt," claimed Ichika still in his lethargy.

The man removed his helmet after that. The adolescent's gaze found its way to a young man with messy dyed hair and piercing eyes. Those same eyes had turned onto Ichika himself.

The frown faded into exasperation. With a vexed tone he spoke.

"This is going to be one of those days isn't it?"

Why yes. Yes it would.

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

Ichika disembarked his seat on his savior's red Honda. "Thanks Inui-san! Sorry for the trouble," he waved at the rider. Waving back, he left with the growl of the engine.

Ichika made his way up the steps of the hall, determination to pass a test which he had originally set out to conquer permeated his psyche, and thus he went onwards with the confidence of a man. Yet unfortunately his future actions would only serve to entangle others in his wake.

His savior didn't know that however. He was at a coffee shop waiting in line for a vanilla latte.

Checking an old clunky flip phone from a bygone era, the rider scrolled down to an old text which he had been sent.

"_Hey nekojita, I have some good news and bad news._

_Good news is, Mihara and Rina are getting married in half a year (no surprise there actually). They plan to hold it at the local catholic church near the orphanage. Keitaro has gotten some venture capitalists to fund his hotel cleaning business, and he opened up a central plant near that cool island academy. You really should see him. I remember your face when you gave him Yuka's phone and… Let's just leave it at that. Just know that you should see him. He'll be happy as well._

_As for the bad news, suffice to say that a new Orphenoch has been sired. This wouldn't be as alarming save for who he was pre-death. His name is Himejima Shinn. I hear he's been featured on the evening news as of late. You know the rest. Find him, eliminate him, and send his remains to me. Again, I'm sorry that you of all people had to do this, but I don't trust anyone else._

_I'll be at CalTech for a few more months. Unfortunately the new project requires active silence, so I can't talk to you while it's in progress. Don't worry, when I'm back, we'll get some coffee. I'll blow it cool for you. I promise._

_From the nekojita's best friend,_

_Mari"_

Closing the device he made it halfway to his table before dropping the hot beverage he bought. Clutching his chest he stumbled his way into the public bathrooms. Locking himself in an empty stall, he brought a trembling hand into his coat pocket and brought out a metal syringe. Three prongs broke skin as it was plunged into his thigh.

To a normal person, the various chemicals and compounds that were present in the drug cocktail would have reduced them to a snivelling, seizuring mess.

Then again, Inui Takumi couldn't be anything remotely close to normal.

When the pain subsided Takumi gazed at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts.

"_Kiba I… I can't possibly live like this."_

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

Night had fallen onto the city. Speckled lights of the red-light district twinkled as the crickets made their presence known to man. The serenity was broken up by the sounds of battle.

A gray vulture only in likeness. In actuality it was the size of a large man, seven-foot two in height. Two pairs of wings spanned its back, whilst its legs were of the avian kind, talons and reversed knees in all. Adorned with skulls and feathers of its kind, the final deformity was a small vultures head and neck which resided in one of its eye sockets, which bobbed up and down as it did in its nature.

And the grotesque thing was running. Running from something smaller in size, yet had inspired dread in the hearts of its kind.

"_**Faiz,"**_ he said softly with voice quivering. It didn't say the words. Rather, it was an ephemeral image, a shadow, of a man with haggard features, an expression of terror on the shadow's face. _**"Faiz!"**_it intoned once more, louder and more worried. Spreading its wings the monstrosity made its way into the only cover available: an abandoned school hall. It didn't look back towards the hunter.

He stood there in armor of steel, night, and fresh blood. Donned in pitch black armor broken with segments of red and metal, the warrior walked towards his prey. The dark helmet, with two eyes shining in the darkness, shadowed the keen teeth on the bottom of the helm. Taking out a simple handle, he watched the bird run away while a crimson blade extended from the free end.

The warrior gave chase. A run became a sprint, and sprint became dash. Eyes glowing in the darkness the red knight pursued the enemy.

Seven rooms. There, that one.

He kicked the door. It was an empty auditorium with flickering fluorescent lights. In the middle a large object, taller than he was and covered in a sheet of canvas. He disregarded it, his attention was on finding the enemy.

Creak. Creak. The sound came from above.

Flexing his legs the knight prepared for movement. Crunch went the floorboards as he jettisoned towards the rafters. At the apogee of his flight, he swung his sword. The red energy made contact with gray flesh, and a wing fell to the Earth.

"**Ahhh!" **screamed the monster. Like its former wing, it lost control and crashed to the ground.

When the dust cleared, instead of a seven foot monstrosity was a wasting man, bone showing through pale skin. His eyes were locked onto the red knight.

"P-Please, f-f-forgive m-me," he bowed in fear. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm-"

"Ryuugajou Makio…" interrupted the man in red.

"Y-Yes?"

"Who made you?" was his question.

"Wha-what," Makio stuttered. He was confused. What was Faiz talking about?

"DON'T PLAY STUPID WITH ME! YOU WERE SIRED! NOW WHO! MADE! YOU!" Makio was thrown into an adjacent wall.

Makio scrambled to attention. _'I gotta kill him, I have to kill Faiz!'_ his mind cried. Reverting back to his monstrous form, the remaining wing he possessed was aimed at his killer. Feathers sharp as swords assaulted Faiz.

"YOU BAST-ARGHH!"

The red armor dissipated when it struck his belt. The phone which served as the buckle was sent careening next to the covered object in the middle of the room. Unarmored, the bloody form of Inui Takumi crawled on the floor.

"**YES, YES FILTHY HUMAN! YOU ARE NOTHING WITHOUT YOUR POWER! I'LL KILL YOU, SLOWLY! YOU'D WISH FOR DEATH WHEN I'LL BE ONLY A FOURTH-WAYS DONE WITH YOU."**

"Shut. The . YOU CHICKEN BASTARD!"

It sneered.

The monster sent another volley of razors his way. Takumi grit his teeth as he rolled behind the covered mystery in the auditorium.

_**Boom. Boom. Boom.**_

The vulture ended his assault to walk over to his hiding enemy. An ephemeral image overlayed his shadow yet again as it spoke.

"**Isn't this amusing Faiz? The hunter has become the prey. Now what say you?"**

Behind his cover Takumi replied, "That's such a bad cliche and you know it."

"**WELL THEN,"** it snarled. **"I'LL JUST HAVE TO MAKE IT INTERESTING FOR YOU!"**

Arms the size of small trees pierced through the clothed cover, perhaps intended to spear Takumi through. Yet he didn't wait for the claws to run him; he dove to retrieve his phone on the side.

The cover slipped off the mystery at that moment. A behemoth of steel and technology was revealed, towering even the transformed Makio.

"_**MULTIPLE THREATS DETECTED. ACTIVATE DEFENSE PROTOCOLS. ALERTING HANDLERS. AWAITING FURTHER ORDERS."**_

The steel behemoth stood from its kneeling form in a ray of green light. Two shields manifested in front of it. The vulture was in awe over the piece of high technology. It was enough time for Takumi to don his armor again.

_**BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.**_

"_**STANDING BY…"**_

"**HENSHIN"**

"_**COMPLETE."**_

The red light flooded the room. Crimson streams of Photon Blood snaked around his body. Another flash, and the Sol foam and Sol Metal covered all of his body. Armored again, Inui Takumi had assumed the mantle of Faiz once more. He bent his legs into a familiar position, and flicked his right hand. His left drew from his belt a knuckle-duster, and slipped it on the other.

"Come on yakitori, don't think you can handle it?" Takumi taunted.

"**I'LL EAT YOU!"**

The mad beast rushed in for a tackle. Takumi stepped to the side, and momentum carried his assailant into the drywall.

"**RARGHHH!"**

Again the beast rushed towards him, this time sending artillery in the form of his feathers. Not wasting a chance, Takumi jumped behind the shields of the statue. He accidentally brushed the inside of the cockpit seat. The monster was above him now poised to strike. Takumi slipped a small piece of the phone on his belt and-

"**HUMANS WILL NEVER DEFEAT THE ORPHEN-"**

"_**ERROR! ERROR! ANOMALY DETECTED! ERROR!"**_

-placing it into the weapon on his fist he-

"_**ANOMALY PROCESSED. REPAIRED. NEW USER RECOGNIZED."**_

-jumped into the air. Sailing upwards he ducked under the monster's outstretched talons.

"_**ENEMY DETECTED! USER SURVIVAL PRIORITY PROGRAM 001-B ACTIVATE! ENGAGING ENEMY!"**_

Ready to charge his fist for the final blow, a green blur was in the way between him and his enemy.

"Wha-"

The shield of the metal titan impacted against the monsters face. It sent him falling yet again.

"_**EXCEED CHARGE"**_

"ORYAHHH!"

Takumi had reached the ceiling and used it as a springboard for attack. When his fist met flesh, it glew with power. The force had driven the hammer of his blow all the way into the ground. Cracking the floor, Takumi's enemy had dissolved into dust and blue flame. All that was left was a fading symbol: a crimson Phi.

Takumi had removed his armor. The steel and fabric returned to the light it came from. The battle went a lot longer than he had believed, and he was on the verge of collapse.

Attempting to escape without issue had been a struggle. Takumi's leaden legs wouldn't step forward. Memories, painful memories, were dredged up by the pain.

"_Almost there. Almost there. Almo-"_

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

He was dreaming before he opened his eyes. Lying down on a grassy hill surrounded by comrades past and present was Takumi. The closest was a girl with a princess cut and a boy with spiky hair. It was Takumi who spoke first.

"You know guys... I've finally found a dream."

"Really? What kind of dream?" said the girl.

"Yeah, tell us Tak-kun." supplanted the other boy.

Takumi didn't reply to them. His attention was on the sky.

"Is there something wrong Tak-kun?"

"No. Nothing at all."

"So then, what's your dream Takumi?"

"My dream," he began. "My dream is to make the world's laundry pure white. To make… To make everyone in the world happy."

"_**Well then Takumi-"**_ said a new voice. Turning his head the world faded into white without any person, or thing, except Takumi and the male who spoke to him. Takumi's eyes went wide when he saw his identity.

"_**Why are you still here then."**_

"KIBA! I-you…"

"_**Sorry, but this isn't the place you should be in."**_

"_**Goodbye Inui Takumi."**_

Takumi's eyes were flooded in light. He was in a hospital, judging from his new gown. Similarities ended there when it became clear there were armed guards who were… women? There was a another in a professional suit sitting with her legs crossed in a chair next to the bed. It was clear that she was the authority figure of the group.

The woman walked over to the end of his bed and reached for a clipboard hanging from the bed end. Quickly flipping through the pages she found what she was looking for.

"Inui Takumi…"

"Uh… Yeah?"

"... born June 4, 1984 in the Kobe province of Japan, then subsequently raised in the City of Ashiya in the Hyougo prefecture. Went to St. Marie Elementary, and was known as one of their most promising students. However you along with your parents were caught up in a traffic accident which took their and the other driver's lives. You were the only survivor. After that you were passed around from relative to relative in the hopes of finding a suitable guardian. However after turning fourteen you dove into delinquency, most likely due to the trauma of losing your parents. And on the eve of your sixteenth birthday you spent your money on a motorcycle and left to parts unknown."

She set down the clipboard and walked to the right side of his head.

It was three years later that you would appear again, this time working at the Kikuchi Dry Cleaning Shop. Again you left after two years in order to complete your higher education on American school. After completing your degree in three years, you resumed your travels once more. South America, Europe, Asia, Africa. The only continents you have yet to be in are Antarctica and Australia."

"All of that I can take. All of that makes sense. But tell me… **HOW THE HELL CAN YOU ACTIVATE AN I.S**!**?**"

**IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC**

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><p><strong>IS: ΩΨΟΔΧɸΦɸΧΔΟΨΩ :EC<strong>

_Authors Note:_

_Alright guys, here is my new pet project, my first fic actually! I always loved Kamen Rider, 555 especially, and I was saddened by the lack of good material out there, so I wrote my own! Actually I had a bitch __of a time typing this out. Typing has always been the bane of my existence, and this was no different. Oh well, the Vaporwave (my new genre btw) helped immensely._

_Anyways this takes place ten years after t__he events of 555. Takumi's age here is 28 only because I can't find his real age and his actor age was good enough. If there are canon inconsistencies let it be known that I kinda rely on the wiki for assistance until I find the time to finish 50 episodes. Anyways I'm done here for the night._

_Read and review please, those are better than crack. Also if there are little errors here and there, I appreciate help in knowing them._

**_-Tethriot_**


	3. Chapter 3: The Belt's Power COMPLETE!

_**/**_

_**CHAPTER 3:**_

_**THE BELT'S POWER.**_

Φ

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><p>Φ<p>

They were staring. Their eyes were wide and mouths agape, some more than others. With barely any pomp and circumstance, he strode into the room with his black boots clicking. Only two people in the space had done anything different: A boy with an accusing finger and a face of shock, and a girl with a ponytail whose eyes were locked onto the former.

"You!" the boy cried out.

Oh, it was him, that idiot from a while back.

_**PANG!**_

"OWW! Chifuyu-nee, what was th-"

_**PANG!**_

"What did I say about referring to me as Orimura-sensei on school grounds, Orimura?"

So, _that_ was the one she spoke about. Takumi had wondered about why she had forced him to shadow the kid and now he knew; the brother Orimura was an idiot. Still, he was surprised. Why would anyone think a woman as professional as Orimura Chifuyu would have family that would possess any less than her stature?

"Now, umm, could you please introduce yourself, Mr…" asked a buxom teacher with sea-green hair.

"Inui. Inui Takumi. I am twe-_eighteen! Eighteen years old,_" he hastily corrected. In the corner of his eye, he had seen Chifuyu cast a disapproving shake at the tell.

"Anyway, I will be a student here at I.S. Academy from now on."

He was waiting for the sign that everything would finish, but the room was silent, so deathly silent. One could cut the tension with a knife. And then…

"_**KYAAAA!"**_

The sudden staccatos of each individual's shriek had nearly made him fall in its presence. The pitch was disorienting, the bass in his heart stopping. and all were aimed at the man in his (supposedly) late teens.

"HE'S SO CUTE!"

"NO, HE'S SO BAAAD!"

"NE, NE, I BET HE'S A SEXY TSUNDERE!"

"PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!"

"IGNORE ME, BUT STILL BE A GOOD BOYFRIEND!"

"**SILENCE!"**

The words parted the commotion like Moses had done with the Red Sea. Immediately, every rowdy person had sat down in their seats, heads downcast, though the boy still gaped, and another girl – a blonde – was glaring at the new arrival as if he were some insect to be studied.

And himself?

He was lost in his thoughts.

Inui Takumi was fuming. Not less than two weeks ago, after fighting that Orphenoch in the dark building (why the thing was even there he had no clue), and waking up four days later with a stern woman herding him into an interrogation room with his gown still on, demanding to know why in the hell some human (he didn't see the irony) put on a _weapon created to kill monsters_ on just for shits and giggles. He had to pinch the bridge of his nose. Takumi never knew there was someone who was as stupid as Keitaro was (back then, at least).

Hope for Takumi came in the form of a good-natured, elderly headmaster. He liked the guy. Rational, mindful of other people, respectful; how would anything ever ruin that assumption?

He was wrong. So very wrong.

Φ

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"So that is your story, young man… I truly mean it from the bottom of my heart when –"

The principal stopped. Takumi, who had been rapt with attention for how the cultured man had spoken, noticed his sudden stiffening. He was confused about how a person, such as the headmaster of a school for the most powerful soldiers in the world, could cease talking. Takumi turned left towards Chifuyu, who was pinching her nose while her eyes were squeezed tight. In her free hand, she held a phone. Three rabbits were dancing on the screen.

What the hell is going on?

"W-W-Well, I'd best be going then, hahaha," laughed the headmaster nervously.

Okay, Takumi knew something was up, and Chifuyu looked as if she were ready to bash her head into the steel table. The automatic door made a loud "whoosh" as it opened and shut.

"Oi! Wait a minute! Wait a minute! You owe me answers!" yelled Takumi.

The loudspeakers came to life.

"_**Unidentified Object Detected. Unidentified Object Detec- *static *static…"**_

"_**Anomaly detected in Active Radar Processing Unit."**_

"_**Anomaly processed. Active Radar System shutting down."**_

"Damn that girl," Chifuyu hissed through her teeth.

_**BURURURURU…**_

He didn't know how or why, but it was at that moment that he felt encroaching dread. In his mind's eye, he could see Masato's face, smiling inten-

STOP! JUST STOP!

And exhale.

He cleared away that disturbing image as fast as it had been thought. It was closer. He could feel the fear in his bones and a chilling laugh behind him.

'_Where is it coming, where's it going to come from?'_

Takumi felt it above.

_**CRASHHH!**_

After the deafening crash, the room was filled with smoke. After wiping the ash and residue from his face, he searched for the cause of the disturbance.

"What. The. Fu –"

It was a carrot. A CARROT. If he thought boomboxes which forced people to dance were weird, then this took the crazy cake – the crazy carrot cake.

Oh man, he was already going crazy. It worsened when it split in half and fell apart, a cloud of steam hiding a figure with arms akimbo. No, its right hand was raised in a two-finger salute.

"Chi~Chan it's been too long! I just found something really, really awesome, and it's about tall, dark, and handsome over there!"

Line Break.

Oh dear Kami in Heaven, why did you do this to me? What blasphemies have I committed in my past life for which I must now pay?

If you're wondering why I'm freaking out right now, it's for one simple reason:

Everyone in my class is a girl.

That's right. You heard me. Girl. Human with two 'X' chromosomes encoded in their genes. As for me? Well, I'm stuck in the 'XY' club, and I'm happy, thank you very much. I like little Kenji-san too much to make kids, after all.

Honestly, why would any guy want to be in my situation right now? This sucks. This is one of those times when I wish Inui-san hadn't hauled me off the street. Okay, not really, but you get what I mean.

I could feel the girls' eyes on my back. It's a feeling of creeping unnaturalness, these stares.

On the left, I try to signal my childhood friend, Shinonono Houki. I see she still wore her hair up with that ribbon from a long time ago. All she does is turn away and pretend to look outside. Is she alright? Is this what Chifuyu-nee told me about a woman's 'time of the month' after I found that bloody tampon in the shower after she devoured all the baking chocolate? But I digress. Still, such a cold reaction. Is this the attitude that a childhood friend would show after being separated for six years? No…does she completely hate me now?

Oh man, this is going to be a long school year.

I wonder if there's a support group.

…

Hello everybody! My name is Orimura Ichika, and I'm the only guy in an academy for girls who pilot weapons of mass destruction! (People are shouting, 'Hi Orimura-san.' Except maybe Issei. He would probably be crying for some reason.)

"Ye-yes?!"

Having my name called out suddenly, I subconsciously responded. As expected, there were snickers, and it was difficult to stay calm.

Even though it's not like I'm bad at handling girls, there's always a limit. It's similar to liking ramen and letting it be the main course, I'd get sick of it in less than 3 days. *sigh* I don't know. Besides, I never liked ramen to that extent...eh, I shouldn't be thinking about that now.

"...chika-kun. Orimura Ichika-kun!"

"Ah y-yes?"

"W-well, I'm sorry for calling you out so loudly. Did I startle you? Sorry, sorry! But, the self-introductions... we started from 'A', and now we're at 'O' for Orimura-san now, so, please, could you introduce yourself? Could you?" asked Yamada-sensei.

"U-Uhm, it's just an introduction. You don't need to be so apologetic."

Miss Yamada bowed in apology. Her glasses slid off and she fumbled as she tried to catch them. Am I a bad person for thinking that she doesn't seem old enough to be qualified for a teaching position? Because I would believe it if she were as old as me, and that there was something real sketch about the quality administrator for the school.

"My name is Orimura Ichika… Nice to meet you, everyone…"

I could feel them again. The stares. The watching. Seriously, were their eyes twinkling? Because I swear they were.

Oh man, this is bad. I gotta do something or else I'll be That Guy. No one likes That Guy! Even I don't like That Guy!

_Inhale._

_Exhale._

"**That is all!"**

I'm a genius. Or not.

The sound of the females' face faulting could be heard on the third floor.

"Ah. Was that bad?"

PANG!

Fist met forehead. This seems familiar somehow. The fist size, the amount of force, the angle of contact…

"Ah, that hurt- Geh! Chifuyu-nee?!"

PANG!

Another hit. Seriously Chifuyu-nee, I bet I just lost ten thousand brain cells. How could you do this to your kid brother?!

"At school, it's Orimura-sensei," Chifuyu-nee replied in her ever-so professional tone.

"Ah, Orimura-sensei, is the meeting over?" said the greenette.

"Yeah, Yamada-kun. Sorry for pushing you to greet the class."

Chifuyu-nee walked up to the front of the room. What is she doing here? That sister of mine, whose job I don't even know about; my own sister who couldn't even make it back home once or twice per month. What in the world is she doing as a teacher?

"Everyone, my name is Orimura Chifuyu, and my duty is that for this year, I'll be training you in the operations and controls of the I.S. Everything I teach, you have to remember and understand. To those who can't understand, I'll teach them 'til they are able. My job is to thoroughly train you during freshman year, from the ages of fifteen to sixteen. You can dislike my attitude, but you still have to do what I say. Understood?"

_Grrk_. The talkings. Oh man, those talkings. Please, please, please, don't hur- wait, why are the girls all swooning now?

"_KYAAA_—! It's Chifuyu-sama, it's the real Chifuyu-sama herself!"

"I've always been your fan!"

"I came to this school from North Kyuushuu because I admired you, Onee-sama!"

"I came all the way from southern Hokkaido!"

"I'm so happy to be taught by Chifuyu-sama!"

"I'll gladly die for Chifuyu-sama!"

"I'm amazed at how many nutjobs this school accepts every year. Do they put all the loonies in my class on purpose?" She sighed.

"KYAAAHH! ONEE-SAMA! SCOLD US MORE! SCOLD US MORE!"

"BUT BE GENTLE TO US FROM TIME TO TIME!"

"AND BE EXTREMELY ELEGANT AFTERWARDSSS!"

Oh, Kami, they like it. They're masochists, all of them.

"Chifuyu-nee is my homeroom teacher!?" Chifuyu spun around and cracked her knuckles.

PANG!

This time, the desk made contact with my face.

"GARGH!"

DAMMIT!

"That's Orimura-sensei to you."

I muttered out a quick, "Yes, Orimura-sensei."

"Eh...? Then, it means that Orimura-kun is Chifuyu-sama's younger brother...?"

Yeah, I don't think Orimura is exactly a common name, eh? Well, if it makes you feel better, I feel awful compared to my sister. I'm just a normal guy, for Kami's sake! Well, except maybe I'm the only dude in the world who can use an I.S., but that's totally irrelevant.

"Maybe that has something to do with him being the only guy in the world that can use the IS?"

"That's enough!" Chifuyu projected. "Your syllabus for the next six months begins with memorizing all data concerning the I.S. After that, practical training, where you'll have two weeks to memorize the basic maneuvers. So, have you got that? Even if you don't say 'yes Ma'am'!"

"YES, MA'AM!"

Yamada-sensei addressed the class again. Her bubbly tone reached the ears of the whole class.

"Now, as I'm sure you're already aware, "I.S." actually stands for Infinite Stratos. It is a multi-form suit originally developed in Japan. When it was first conceived ten years ago, it was originally designed to be used in outer space. However, those plans are currently on hold. Due to the Alaska Treaty, the I.S. is also prohibited from military usage. Therefore, it's used solely for competitions and sporting events. And, our I.S. Academy is the educational institution in the world, established with the objective of training I.S. pilots!

Students all around the world attend this school, where young people from a multitude of countries get to live, work, and study side-by-side as they hone and perfect their piloting skills. So starting today, let's study hard for the next three years!"

"YES MA'AM!" sang the class.

She didn't mention that only females could operate the I.S…except for the one male in the whole world who's able to do i–

"Before I leave so Yamada-sensei can teach the lesson, I have one more thing to announce." The whole class perked up in anticipation.

"We have a new transfer. It was last-minute, but I expect you to behave respectfully."

"OH MY GOSH!"

"Eh? Orimura-san, I didn't know that we have another student transferring in."

"That's, like, super cool!"

"That's because the matter was strictly confidential, Yamada. The papers were just finalized and accepted yesterday. I apologize for not telling you sooner. However, the meeting took most of my free time."

"Ne, ne, do you think it'll be a cute girl?"

"I apologize then, Orimura-sensei. I hope she'll love learning here!"

"Lol, I really hope so! But what if it's a super cute boy?"

"Well the thing is…"

"Oh my gosh! That's, like, impossible. If you're right, I'll totally, like, buy you fro-yo for, like, a month!"

Oh Kami, please have mercy. I can't deal with even more girls…

"Please step into the room, Inui-kun."

Oh man, even the name terrifies me. I swear she's gonna be barking at every- Wait… That name… I know it! This is too much, this –

A tall figure strode into the room, with his black boots clicking on the tile. I stood up and slammed my hands onto the desk.

"YOU!" I pointed a finger at him.

_**PANG!**_

This is going to end in tears. I just know it.

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

"So let me get this straight," Chifuyu began, "You're of another race of humans that has evolved faster than the current ones." She rubbed her temples as she said that. Poor girl. One could only imagine what sort of things she put up with every day.

"Yes."

"_...eee."_

"…who can transform into monstrous beings called 'Orphenoch…'"

"Yes."

"…which are created by reviving after death…"

"Yes."

"…that can burn humans to ash…"

"Yes."

"…that, if they survive, they also turn into Orphenochs…"

"Yes."

"…and that you fight them to protect humanity…"

"Yes."

"_Weee~"_

"And not only that," she said, and massaged her nose with great intensity. "You're one of 'them…'"

"..."

"Last but not least, because humans who turn into Orphenochs are unable to handle the strain of such rapid evolution, they experience cellular breakdown, turn into ash, and die…"

"..."

"Well? I'm waiting for an answer."

"...Yes."

"Great, that's just great. Now, besides that idiot sibling of mine, I have an even bigger mess to deal with."

"I don't suppose you'll let me go? It might make it a bit easier on you," Takumi attempted to negotiate.

It failed.

Chifuyu shot out of her seat and snatched him by the collar. If she weren't scowling, he would have been a bit turned on, Takumi supposed. Her face was so close that he could smell the coffee on her breath.

"YOU LEFT A SECURITY OFFICER IN A COMA WHILE INSPECTING A FLASHLIGHT!"

Let it be known that Inui Takumi tried and failed.

"I want a lawyer…" he mumbled.

.Chifuyu released his collar and huffed in her own seat.

"Do you really think that that's going to help you here? When we found you, there was an I.S. with your D.N.A. imprinted on it. It was embedded into a wall, along with ash and human remains. You just messed with the most advanced and expensive technology in the world, and now you're asking for a lawyer? Sorry, it doesn't work that way."

"That's bullshit," he growled. "Isn't there something that makes it so only girls can use it? As you can see, I have the organs to prove my manhood."

"_Owhee~wee~wee!"_

"Nevertheless, you just woke up a sleeping dragon. Literally. Do you know how many companies would pay to have you, much less kill? You could be the catalyst for the greatest arms race the world has ever seen."

"..."

"I will ask you one last time: _What is your game?_"

"_Whee~whee~whee!"_

"SHUT UP, TABANE!" they both yelled.

Shinonono Tabane finally stopped spinning in her swivel chair. Upon exiting her carrot… pod… thing, she graciously cleaned up the debris and destruction, which marked her entrance with nanobots. However, there was still a large, gaping hole. Thankfully, it was covered with a blanket she brought. The magenta- and rabbit-patterned cloth never let her down.

"Ooh~ That's so mean, Tak-kun and Chi-chan! I can't believe you're ganging up on me! I'm Tabane the genius!" she proclaimed, again standing proud with an outstretched peace sign.

"Shut up Tabane, just shut up," replied Chifuyu.

"Anyway," she said, turning her attention back to Takumi, "We, as a private organization dedicated to the advancement of I.S. technology, must detain you for more procedures. Afterwards, a council will convene to decide the next course of action."

"THAT'S BULLSHIT! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THEY ARE, WHAT THEY DO?"

"DON'T GIVE ME THAT! IT WAS YOU WHO SCREWED UP FIRST!" Chifuyu voiced in retaliation to his accusations.

"Anyways, the Academy, as a result of you tampering with equipment, has the final say. As its own quasi-nation, this school is the one place in Japan, perhaps in the world, where we have complete jurisdiction over all matters."

"This is such a hassle," he sighed in resignation.

"Well, don't get your panties in a bunch, Inui. This is your mess. Frankly, I would have already let you go. I have too much to deal with already…"

"You know, you keep going on about that, whatever it is."

"Whatever it is, it isn't your damn business," she quickly ended.

"My point is," she continued, "My superiors are trying their absolute best to keep this as less of an international incident as possible. If they keep you as an experiment or as a ward, then we can keep everyone happy, and keep the bureaucrats less pissy than they already are."

"Well, shit."

Was it really going to end? Would it be the end of his dream? Granted, maybe it was karma for all of the years spent in apathy. But still…

This was bullshit.

"Ne,ne, Taku-chwan, I think I might have the solution for that!" The perky woman interjected.

She now had his attention. What would sort of madness would this crazy woman put him through?

"It all starts off like this…"

He really didn't like the way she was rubbing her hands…

Or the way she was smiling…

Fucking Kusaka…

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

How-why-what-what?

"Uhh, you know, Ichika, if you're going to call me out here just to make weird noises, then I'm just going to leave." Takumi said.

If you want to know what's going on, sorry – I can't help you. When Takumi came into the room, all I could remember was a clipboard coming at light speed and blacking out, right around the time the _'Kya's'_ started. Houki filled me in. It went something like this:

"_KYAAAAAA!"_

"_OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!"_

"_IT'S A BAD BOY BISHONEN!"_

"_HE'S SO DARK!"_

"_PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!"_

"_PLEASE ACT COLD TO ME, BUT SECRETLY BE A GOOD BOYFRIEND!"_

Or something along those lines. When I woke up, I pinched myself. Turns out I'm not, if I can believe the marks on my arm.

Anyways, what surprised me most was what Takumi had called my sister.

"_Hey, Chifuyu, do I really have to fix my transfer papers now?"_

Chifuyu. HE SAID CHIFUYU. Oh, Kami, I swear that that took the number-one spot as the most terrifying moment in my life, near-death experience be damned. The class thought the same. Everyone stared at him, waiting to see how the new student (and a guy at that) would suffer execution. Hell, from what I've heard, some of them would be willing to do it themselves. Apparently, the "Orimura Chifuyu-sama International I.S. Fan Club" (previously the Asian Chifuyu-sama Cult and the Orimura Chifuyu Western Foundation, which had merged) caught wind of this; thus, they all went to my class to find him.

I was caught up in it, too. I teetered between feeling sorry for the guy and wanting to punch him in the gut, regardless of my debt to him. Does that make me a bad person or a good brother?

"_All right,"_ my elder sis said, _"Just get back in twenty minutes."_

"_Thanks, Chifuyu."_

"_It's Orimura-sensei in school."_

"_Yeah, yeah…" _he called dismissively as he walked out.

When I scanned the room, everyone's faces, even Yamada-sensei's, were bone white. As nobody understood completely what just happened, everyone turned to Chifuyu-nee for answers.

All she said was, _"Is there a problem?"_

The class went back to their regular positions, except for Takumi. The event, not five minutes later, was dubbed "The Non-orific Incident," and spread throughout the whole school through SMS and whatever girls do these days.

And here I am now, talking to Inui Takumi on the roof, with Houki watching in the background. Because I really, _really, _want to get to the bottom of this.

This headache won't go away, will it?

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

He left them to return to class. There was much sputtering and stuttering as Ichika tried his hardest to get the answers he needed. Unfortunately for him, Chifuyu made it _pretty damn clear, _after the first near slip-up, that he keep to his cover, come hell or high water. Tabane's interference strained the already tense atmosphere to a breaking point, at least where paperwork was involved. Takumi still felt pretty agitated, but the nice break, courtesy of one younger Orimura, had given an excuse for a chance to relax on the rooftop garden, even ifhe hadn't been listening at all. The only things he picked up from the exchange were that the girl who followed them was named Houki Shinonono, and that she probably had something important with Ichika for her to cast those eyes at him. It didn't really matter, but he whispered in her ear that maybe, just maybe, she shouldn't jump to conclusions right away with her childhood friend. He should know – he's dealt with enough problems that would have been easily fixed if they were just brought up.

Communication is key, after all.

Oh look, Ichika is being an idiot again. This time, it was something about required material. To be fair, Takumi hadn't read the textbook either, but he never received a copy in the first place. It's all good to him. Less headache that way.

"Yamada-sensei…"

"Yes, don't be shy now."

"I don't understand any of it!"

"What! Not any of it!? Is there anyone else who doesn't understand what we've covered so far?"

Stillness from the crowd. Nobody wanted to support Y Chromosome. With deference to his fellow man, Takumi raised his hand. It wasn't because Chifuyu gave him orders to follow; that's just ridiculous.

"Oh my! Even Inui-kun has troubles with the curriculum. What should we do, Orimura-sensei."

Chifuyu simply walked towards her brother.

"Did you not read the assigned textbook as per Academy instructions?"

Takumi knew what was going to happen next. He clasped his hands behind his head in anticipation.

"That giant-looking thing? I thought it was a phone book, so I threw –"

_**THWACK**_

"Inui was excused because of certain complications, but you, you, Orimura, have no excuse other than your own idiocy. You will be given a new copy. I expect you to memorize within a week."

Chifuyu left her brother. Ichika seemed to want to say something else, but was shot down by the daggers of his sister's glare.

The period gave way to recess. Takumi was resting his head on his desk when his seatmate went forth to speak with his new entertainment. Learning of _Schadenfreude _in Hamburg hadn't exactly turned him into a sadist, but as a result, it guided him towards social normalcy, albeit ever so slightly. He was rewarded with another one of the child Orimura's antics with the opposing sex.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I have no idea who you are."

"Ah! How do you not know of me? I am Cecilia Alcott, England's Representative Contender, who scored hi-"

"Hold on there. I have a question," he beseeched.

"Well, it is the responsibility of nobles to answer queries from the lower classes."

Takumi could feel the cringe approaching in the horizon. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Hell's fury couldn't begin to compare man's ignorance of the fairer sex's accomplishments. The price of ignorance is high, dearest Orimura.

"So, what's a Representative Contender?"

The blonde girl twitched. The rest of the classroom fell to the floor in shock. Surely, the name was enough for him to deduce its meaning?

It was not.

"This is an outrage! Surely, you must be joking! From my prior research before my arrival to this country, I'd come under the notion that this land's people were among the best and brightest, however barbaric they may be. But apparently, from what I've seen, the men of Japan are either delinquents like him," pointing to Takumi,

"Oi, leave me out this!"

"Or ignoramuses like you who are utterly devoid of knowledge! Honestly, it is common sense!"

"Just get it over with! Or do you not know, either?" Ichika spat.

"From the name, we as Representative Pilots are the elite of the elite, the cream of the crop, the chosen ones of their countries hand-picked to serve as I.S. pilots who represent their respective nations. Your failure to deduce this from the name baffles me."

"Ohhh, when you put it that way, it makes perfect sense."

"Yes, that is right." She pointed to the heavens. "I am one of those elite. It is truly a miracle and your good fortunes as the only men capable of piloting an I.S. in the whole world to be sharing a home room period with I, Cecilia Alcott! Oh, what a grace with which you have been gifted! Did that get through your thick Japanese skull of yours? Hmmm?"

"All right, all right," Ichika sighed in resignation, "I guess I'm lucky, then."

"Are you mocking me?"

"Hey, you're the one saying how lucky I am."

"First of all, I'd like to know how you managed to enter the Academy with absolutely no prior knowledge concerning the most basic of basics. I had heard that, as the first male to control an I.S., you had some semblance of potential, but as of now, everything has devolved into an utter disappointment."

"Well, expecting anything out of me is a bad idea."

"Hmph. In any case, a person as remarkable as I can still find it in my heart to be considerate towards people of your stature. So, if you do have questions, I wouldn't mind answering them, provided that you would plead with tears in your eyes."

It was time for him to intervene. After all, orders given under duress were still orders after all. Besides, he saved the kid already. Why not again? Quietly making his way to the bickering two, he placed a hand on Ichika's shoulder.

"Hey, Ichika, I don't know where my dorm is. Can you help me find it? Besides," he scanned the room, "I don't feel safe with _them _watching."

"With who- _Ohhh_, I see," nodded the boy, with understanding. "Well, sorry about that, Alcott-san. Do you mind if I accompany Takumi for a while?"

"Why you… How dare you interrupt a lady when she is speaking!"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Alcove-san. I just want to have some man-to-man time with the only other male in school." Takumi smiled.

"I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I DEFEATED AN INSTRUCTOR IN COMBAT AND PLACED HIGHEST ON THE ENTRANCE EXAM, COMMONER!"

"Huh, that is impressive," he admitted.

"Hmph! It is only right for a noble like me to-"

"The only reason I'm here is because Chifuyu thought that I was pretty good, was all…" he smirked.

It hadn't been a complete lie. When Takumi left the hospital, both Chifuyu and Tabane coerced (or rather, forced) him into an I.S. for data purposes, if you called rampant sexual harassment from the genki one's end scientific.

"Our teacher- How- Wha- Ms. Chifuyu- Huh?"

"Sorry about that. If you want, we can continue this tomorrow, all right?" Ichika quickly gathered his bag and stood up.

"It's Alcott! My name is Cecilia Alcott, you scoundrel! Mark my words, Takumi Inui, you will regret this!"

"Goodbye, Asterisk-san."

"**AGHHHHH!**"

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

…

_**AGGGGHHHHHHH!**_

_**WHO IN THE BLOODY HELL DOES THAT FILLLLTHY COMMONER THINK HE IS? THAT-THAT-THAT….**_

_**FOCKIN BASTAHD! I SWEAH TO FAHCKIN' GOD THAT I WILL JAM MY FAHKIN' I.S.'s ARM SO FAR UP HIS ARSE, HANG HIM BY HIS LARGE INTESTINES, AND BIND HIM WITH THE SMALLER ONE, THAT BLOODY, BARMY WANKER! I SWEAR TO ALL THAT IS HOLY THAT I WILL GET MY BLUE TEARS AND SMITE HIM WHERE IT COUN-**_

"Umm, Cecilia-sempai…"

"WHAT, YOU BLOODY –"

"You have some toilet paper stuck to your shoe," admitted the twit who spoke to me.

What is this little- Oh… I really do have toilet paper stuck to my shoe. I turned back to her. Poor girl must have been terrified, but who was the one who did it in the first place?

Wait…

"I apologize for my rather uncouth behavior towards yourself," I told the shuddering underclassman. "Please, I hope you may find it in your heart to forgive me. You see –"

_Now after bowing, give her that world-renowned Alcott performance. Lift pink handkerchief to right side of face. Single tear._

"Ah! Ceclia-sempai! Please don't cry!"

"It's just that *_sniff*, _it's just I've been having these cramps and – and –"

"Say no more, sempai," she said as she grasped my hands. "Just know that I. Have. Your. Back."

Her eyes burned with intensity at the mere sight of my plight. I gave her a small "Thanks" as she told me her name.

"Rose. It's Ruby Rose."

"What a lovely name, Miss Rose. I do hope you have a wonderful day."

"Thanks, Cecila-sempai, _but-I-really-gotta-go-Yang-is kinda-angry-bye!_"

When Ruby left, I sighed in relief.

Oh, what a cock-up.

Never in my life have I, Cecilia Alcott, faced such impertinence until this very moment. A noble like me should never have to suffer in this…_wre__tched _country.

Two men! This is an outrage! At first, when the first buffoon had come into class, I was sure that the Academy was testing me to see if their brightest first-year would succumb to despair. Of course, I knew that he was real, but before, I thought he was something along the lines of, say, fairies and Atlantis, that everything was so exaggerated just because he was a male.

It was then that I learned that he was related to the first Mondo Grosso champion herself, Chifuyu Orimura! I thought maybe, just maybe, I could extend my graces and make the boy something along the lines of my butler.

And then there was the other one. Takumi Inui.

I couldn't contain my shock after watching him stroll into the room. _Another male? What sorcery was this?_

Oh, lament the virtues of feminism, for the men have encroached upon our hallowed utopia.

In all seriousness, I felt that another, even lesser being had entered. Inui was only as tall as the other, but the only similarity was height. At least the Orimura had some sense of that supposed Japanese decency.

And here was this one, walking in like it was just another day, wearing black leather boots and a matching peacoat over his uniform. He strolls in, introduces himself, and seats himself.

I had to cover my ears when these barbarians exclaimed _KYA and OOH._ I felt ashamed, as I had been betrayed by my fellow gender.

I couldn't, and wouldn't, understand how these base women were so enamored by these simpletons. Even the moronic Orimura had better manners than the dog.

Dog. Yes, that _is _a good name for this one.

Alas, that would be an insult to man's best friend. Dogs have the sense not to interrupt conversations, after all.

"_**THE BELL WILL RING IN FIVE MINUTES. STUDENTS, PLEASE REPORT TO YOUR CLASSROOMS."**_

There's the bell. What a shame. How could I, a noble, forget about the next period? If I am to ponder over the events which have transpired, then I figure I may as well apply my makeup at the same time, so I walked to the cleanest sink and turned on the faucet.

Now, where was I?

The beast (it is a fitting term) had the gall to interrupt me while I was speaking to the worm. I only offered my assistance, provided that he serve me, of course, and the beast pulls him away! I could only gawk as my triumphs were swept aside like a crate of expired caviar as he told me that he was hand-picked by the Champion herself!

_**AND MY NAME IS ALCOTT, DAMN IT!**_

If there is Justice in the world, then I shall have it mine!

Perhaps that Student Representative matter might be a good way to start…

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

"No."

"But Takumi-kun, the class voted."

"No, just no."

Takumi was at a complete loss at the happenings in his life.

Becoming an Orphenoch? Check.

Becoming Faiz? Check.

Destroying an international conglomerate and their King? Check.

Being forced back into high school to study and wield one of the most advanced weapons systems on the planet which were previously only able to be used if one was a female? Unfortunately, check.

He added in being forced to sleep in the I.S. hangar, since there weren't any rooms available for a twenty-eight year old man. Takumi was grateful that he still had his bike and his other possessions; the spare sleeping bed was treasured that night. The only other consolation was that he didn't sleep alone. Ichika came as well.

Takumi heard him mutter something about "crazy Houki" and "steel lined doors with a bokken" before he nodded off. After the monotony of the first day, Inui Takumi had finally begun to adjust to his stay at the Academy.

And then what's-her-face showed up.

"This is utterly unacceptable! It would be shameful to make a boy, especially _him,_ a Class Representative!"

He could tell that she had _issues_ with him. He figured that she was a femi-Nazi. Before he returned to Japan, he encountered them everywhere, women who thought they were highest on the food chain just because they were the only sex able to pilot and be test beds for I.S. technology, but the level of prejudice had reached critical mass when Takumi transferred to the Academy. He noticed that, for every two fangirls, there was one that would dismiss him immediately as being a lesser human due to his sex. Of course, he couldn't say anything. Men have done the same for all of human history, after all.

His hypothesis was that the average level of bitchiness exponates when female I.S. capability rises, which he found true.

Takumi looked towards Ichika for some assistance; Ichika cowered behind a newly-printed textbook.

Takumi looked towards Chifuyu. No dice. She seemed to enjoy the salt of his tears.

"You can't possibly expect that I, Cecilia Alcott, England's top representative, have to deal with such humiliation for an entire year! In the first place, simply living in a country with such an underdeveloped level of culture is unbearably painful for someone like me! Oh, the agony!"

Takumi snarled back. "You know, if you hate me so much, why don't _you_ be class president, then?!"

"That is against school policy, Inui," Chifuyu interrupted. "The class charters and codes clearly state that a class representative is nominated by the class body."

"And what does it say about people who, I don't know, DON'T CARE!?"

Smirking, Chifuyu countered. "Unfortunately for you, there is no clause which permits nominees to step down from their positions."

It was here that Inui Takumi realized that perhaps calling her a 'Christmas Cake in the oven' was a bad idea. He was drunk at the time, if the red handprint on his cheek would be any indication.

"See, this is the kind of treatment you can expect from a man!" Cecilia motioned the class. "Brutish, callous, and without any etiquette at all!"

"_**Shut up, girl…" **_

The room went deathly silent.

"_**I have hardly any time for myself since I was shanghaied to this damn place. I'm very tired and very stressed…**_

_**But," **_Takumi walked up to his accuser, _**"I will be damned if I let a brat like you order me around and piss me off just because you want to be LITTLE MISS PERFECT!"**_

He calmed down. The room breathed an inward sigh of relief, all except Cecilia, whose flames of indignation were stoked even further.

"You filthy dog!"

"What did you just call me?"

"That's right, 'DOG'! You're just a mutt off the streets compared to my heritage."

"Please, being a mutt is much better than being a blueblood any day of the week. At least my parents aren't related to each other!"

"YOU WILL STOP INSULTING ME AT ONCE! THIS CALLS FOR A DUEL! And if you should ever lose to me on purpose, then I shall make you my servant! No, I shall make you my slave!"

"Fine," Takumi replied. "So what will it be?"

"Excuse me?"

"Fencing, riding, tennis, shooting? Name your pick."

"Are you daft?" She replied dumbly.

"Is there a problem?"

"IT'S OBVIOUSLY WITH AN I.S., YOU TWIT! YOU'RE IN THIS ACADEMY FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF USING AND MANIPULATING THE BLOODY THINGS!"

"All right, fine, then. So, how much handicap?"

"Ohoho, asking me for a favor already? Thou dost protest too much."

"No, I'm being nice. It's for you.._._"

"_**HAHAHAHAHA~!" **_the classroom burst into hysterics.

"Inui-kun, are you serious?!"

"Yeah, men used to be stronger than women, but that was before the I.S. was invented!"

"People say if men and women went to war, then it would only last three days."

Inui Takumi didn't falter from the insults. Rage boiled in his heart. It was the feeling of weakness, of being seen as insignificant, and Takumi loathed it. Memories from the past decade rushed forth, the events rebuking him for his failures. No, Inui Takumi wouldn't allow himself to lose again. He had sacrificed too much to be beaten by pubescent girls.

In his mind's eye, he saw the visages of old enemies: Two knights, gold and white; a gray beast with the face of a locust. And he crushed them all to pieces.

"As a matter of fact, I'm the one who should be wondering whether to give _you_ a handicap. How humorous Japanese boys are," the blonde girl boasted.

"_**You've got another thing coming if you think I'm going to lose to a little girl like you…"**_

Once again, the class went silent.

_Really silent._

"You know, Inui-san, I think you're underestimating Alcott-san. She's the Representative of Britain," one of the students spoke.

Again, he did not falter.

"Looks like this is settled, then," Chifuyu interjected. "The competition will be staged in Arena Three, which I believe is available next Monday. Inui, Alcott, by then I expect you to be fully prepared for combat."

Takumi, without a single sound, left the room.

Φ

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"This," the elder Orimura said, "…is your Personal I.S."

Takumi gazed upon the structure to which Chifuyu gestured. He was certainly surprised. When he asked her for a rental machine, she gave him a curt dismissal. Then, after asking if they could return his confiscated belt, his already boiling attitude increased.

She said "No."

"_Oh, stop looking at me like that. You won't need the belt or a training unit. The government, at Tabane's behest, decided to create you your own machine. They borrowed an extra prototype for another that was unused, and integrated your "special" technology with it."_

Annoyance became confusion, then a healthy dose of fear. Takumi wasn't sure which he be more fearful of, the fact that they took his Gear, or the fact that Tabane worked on it…

Fucking Kusaka.

Anyway, he planned nothing for the match, at least, not until he was propositioned by a gaggle of women. If he were still in high school, then he would've been elated by their countless offers, but the age gap nixed his fun, and when Takumi returned to the hangar where he slept (he still didn't have a room, much to his displeasure), Ichika was already there, stuck in a bow, and offered his assistance with the mess. Takumi accepted it without hesitation.

The week passed by quickly. It was either him and Ichika, or his reluctant assistant Houki, whom endured countless physical exercises. It helped take his mind off things, and the kendo matches were his favorite.

Takumi smiled inside every time he remembered Ichika's s of slicing Houki's shinai at the handle.

With a dulled fencing saber.

The day of the match arrived, and his new unit was placed next to his motorcycle, in a shipping container. The container unfolded, and his normally apathetic face couldn't hide all of his astonishment. He finally figured out what they had done with the Faiz Gear, if the machine had anything to do with it.

It wasn't just the color scheme. The whole mech looked as if the Faiz Gear were injected with steroids. The gray chest plate was enlarged. The streams of bloody energy increased in quantity, as well as size. The gray fingertips had been elongated and sharpened to a point. Hovering near the shoulders, two pylons the size of car doors; Boosters glistening in the light. On the legs were thrusters of various sizes. Gone were the skintight fabric and the full face helmet. All that remained was the domed eyepiece, devoid of its shielding.

Yet for all its splendor he still felt uneasy as he boarded it. The disconnect of the new machine, lacking the close familiarity of his original suit, unnerved him. The skimpy half-spandex singlet didn't help either. He gripped the internal joystick and brought his hand close to his face for inspection.

"Uwahh, so cool! Hey, what do you think Houki?" called the other male in the hangar.

"It's, umm, cool I guess…"

"Alright Inui," Chifuyu spoke again, "unfortunately for you, the final fitting will be done in-match due to the rushed assembly. The match starts in two minutes. Yamada will brief you on Alcott's machine."

"Thank you, Orimura-sensei. Now listen closely Inui-kun, her I.S. is called Blue Tears. Its primary characteristics are its long-ranged, multi-unit assault weaponry. However, that is all the current information we have been given prior to this match.

"Yeah, I noticed the humongous sniper rifle…"

"I trust you also know about the Absolute Defense System?"

"Of course. Unlike some people, I actually _read _the book when it was given to me."

"Low blow Takumi…"

"Pay attention Inui! As you can see, there aren't any weapons currently pre-installed to work with your machine, so the school has rented out a Garm Submachine from Dunois Enterprises, along with a basic katana from the regular Uchiganes. I must mention that, because of the peculiar circumstances, assistant targeting and movement programs are not installed onto your I.S. mainframe."

A display emerged from the ground, which nearly tipped over his bike. Maneuvering the I.S. towards the case, he strapped his weapons onto his hips.

"Are you ready, Inui?" asked Chifuyu.

"This is still a hassle…"

"Well then, you'd best make sure that your time is repaid in full."

Takumi walked to the launching rails. Both of the teenagers in the hangar wished him luck.

"Win this one Takumi!"

"Good luck, Inui-san."

"One last thing Chifuyu," he asked. "Does this have a name?"

"Sure, if you count 'Acquired Smart Brain Hybrid-Prototype Test-Bed' as one."

"Faiz it is then."

_**ZOOMMM!**_

Following the sudden acceleration, he spun his new machine to face his enemy. The girl smiled with her usual haughtiness.

"Just so you know, this is your last chance!"

"Just get on with it girl. You've already wasted most of my week."

"_Grrr. _It's obvious to everyone that I'm going to absolutely _destroy _you in this match, so why not apologize, and I might just forgive you."

"…"

"So that's your answer. Well, since it's come to this, then I simply _must _oblige you with an action of my own!"

That being said, she leveled her rifle at Takumi.

"When you wake up on the operating table, tell them who sent you!"

_**ZAAAPPP!**_

And with that, the battle began…

Φ

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He evaded the first rifle shot when he saw her point it _right at his face_. It was easier than reciting times tables, but she kept firing as Takumi strafed around the arena's edge. After a while she launched her bits. The drones were much harder to keep track of than the cyan beams, and both of them knew that.

"Now dance,you filthy knave! Dance to the song my Blue Tears and I play!" She cried as she loosed more shots.

Now that he thought about it, he always seemed to have bad luck with blue mechs and guns. It helped that she wasn't (as) crazy as Kitazaki.

"I commend you for being the only pilot to resist my Blue Tears in an initial match, and that is something I must recognize you for…"

"Thanks, I feel _sooo _grateful."

"…But my mercy ends here!"

The mobile drones which plagued him chased even faster. He unloaded rest of last magazine into one, sending it careening below. Another was rent by his blade. With every acrobatic maneuver, he taxed his body to higher extremes.

At the beginning of the match, he decided not to underestimate the girl. It meant that, if he wanted to win, no, _survive, _he would have to tap into his monstrous nature. He was glad for the face shield; it meant that the audience wouldn't see the Orphenoch's characteristic facial markings. When Takumi activated it, he became the Wolf.

He is the _predator_. The _hunter_.

He knew he had to end it soon however. Takumi could feel the wretched power eating away at him. With Mari gone for who knew how long, and the rest of the Elixir back in confiscation, time was stretched thin. Now he really regretted accepting the match at all.

Takumi evaded yet another shot, and seeing an opening, took it immediately. The steel of his blade glinted right above her head. With deadly intent, Takumi swung.

"Unfortunately for you, there are more than four!" his opponent declared.

Tubes the size of his arms swiveled at her hips. Plumes of smoke erupted from the rear, and out came the domed head of something evil.

"_Oh… fuck"_

The last thing he saw was a smug face, and the world went black.

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

This is bad, _really, really bad_.

_**BOOM!**_

Sitting in the control tower with Chifuyu-nee, Houki and I watched the match, and what a match it was.

To be honest, I didn't expect Takumi to have put up such a good fight. All we did this week was, at Houki's insistence, practice Kendo and sparred. We didn't even so much as _touch _an I.S., so you could say my fears were completely justified.

However, Takumi performed above everybody's expectations. When he said he was hand-picked by Chifuyu-nee herself, he wasn't kidding.

From the start of the match, Takumi was fully serious about winning. Evading the first shot of the huge gun, he was chased relentlessly by the bits. Flying round and round, he was sniped by Cecilia as well, but he managed to take down one of them, though he spent all of his gun ammo. Throwing it away and equipping his sword, I could tell he was trying to engage her in close quarters.

And that's when everything went to hell.

Takumi was right in front of her face, ready for the kill, but tell there was something off. Then, att the last second, Cecilia aimed a rocket launcher at him and fired. Maybe he could have blocked it, but at point-blank range it _destroyed _his left leg's armor. As he tried to climb and evade, she fired a second missile.

Takumi fell from the sky.

_**BEEP! BEEP!**_

"Orimura-sensei," I heard Yamada-sensei speak, "we have an unidentified signal emerging from Hangar 2… and it's approaching Inui-kun!"

I turned to the screen. Sure enough, a red flash made its way to Takumi. Even then, both fell when they made contact. He crashed, hitting the ground and kicking up dust clouds into the air.

As I freaked out, Houki slapped me upside the head and pointed to the main screen.

It was a pulsating light; crimson like Takumi's I.S. Then, it grew. The pillar stretched high into the sky, hitting the barrier, and the arena basked in its bloody light. From the center, a lone figure stepped out.

I saw the end.

Takumi would win.

Φ

* * *

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"_-ake up. Takumi, wake up!"_

Takumi jolted upright. He shifted from the bright stadium, filled with spectators, to an empty train yard. A familiar face, not long forgotten, sat across from Takumi, reading what looked like _The Odyssey. _Takumi noticed he was back in his regular clothes, the I.S. gone.

"_My my Takumi, I didn't expect to see you here so soon," _Kiba Yuji spoke softly. He closed his book.

Takumi's friend walked over to him. He helped the sitting Takumi to his feet, and then promptly flicked his forehead.

"_Oww, damn it! What the hell was that for!"_

"_Idiot. Only you could be knocked out by a little kid Takumi." _Kiba flashed a shit-eating grin.

"_Even you man? It's not my fault I'm in this mess."_

"…"

"_Fine. You win. So what do you want to tell me?"_

"_Nothing much, you better win is all."_

He pointed past Takumi, at a swirling funnel of light. Takumi looked once more to his friend, and walked away. Just before he stepped into the singularity, he gave his thanks.

"_No problem Takumi, no problem at all."_

Now gone, Kiba Yuji was left in the rapidly dissolving dream-space. The dead one walked slowly into the blank whiteness that was Inui Takumi's subconscious. Standing in the middle of the nothingness was a girl in a black Victorian-era dress, with a face covered by a dark veil. Yuji reached out the palm of his hand.

"_And how do you do on this fine day?"_

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

_**THUNK. THUNK.**_

The incessant metal-on-metal rapping annoyed Takumi a great deal, but he was grateful for the one doing so. He looked at the remains of his I.S., which were surprisingly more or else intact, and shifted to look at his guardian. Takumi was greeted by a scrolling green eye, on top of a two meter frame. The mechanical guardian flashed its owner a happy thumbs-up.

Takumi wasn't sure how, even when he was stripped searched (and cavity searched), nobody found that his motorcycle had the function to become a six foot Transformer. His analysis was interrupted by yet another familiar voice.

"_**FULL FORMATTING OVER. FIRMWARE UPDATED. HARDWARE CALIBRATED. MASTER-SLAVE FUNCTIONS ENABLED. FIRST SHIFT…"**_

"…_**COMPLETE"**_

His I.S. burst apart in a frenetic explosion. As the pieces flew in all directions it cleared the dust plumes, exposing him to all the audience. A black liquid consumed all of his body like a cocoon, leaving untouched the golden face mask. The once straight and true crimson streams made new pathways, and like veins, crisscrossed over the jet-black membrane. Inside, Takumi struggled against the encroachment of forging of his armor. It solidified…

And he cast it off; the membrane shattering like glass. The energy released flew towards the sky in a mystifying display of crimson fireworks.

Takumi stepped of the light pillar's center. The I.S. had reshaped itself to its original glory, before it was even an I.S. in the first place.

Standing on his own two feet, was Takumi, clad in a new form of the Faiz armor. The bulk of the I.S. had been shed to accommodate the Faiz's original sleekness, which left Takumi much shorter.

The bodysuit was the first that had returned to the form. It was upgraded: thicker, stronger, more supple.

The Sol Metal panels came next. The breastplate was slightly thicker, and shaped for even easier movement. Over the heart area was a complex maintenance port, that vented white hot steam. The pauldrons, greaves, and gauntlet were slightly thicker as well as increased in complexity.

The red Photon Streams remained fairly the same, but it also evolved alongside the rest. Thin ribbon-strands iridescent color spread the circuitry all along the body. It flickered like rainbows at times.

The only thing that remained from the larger I.S. were the floating boosters. Stripped naked to their silver internals, it was contrasted by the glowing _Phi _hologram in the center of its body.

A welcome addition was the Faiz Gear, unrestrained, restored to mint condition. A new weapon had been clipped to the back of his belt. A cross between a gun, dagger, and motorcycle throttle, it had a deadly air.

The last of the changes was a steel backpack, the ends angled and filled with jet exhausts.

The entire crowd was silent for the whole metamorphosis. Takumi angled his head slowly at them. A beat of silence, and then the crowd went wild.

_**TA-KU-MI! TA-KU-MI! TA-KU-MI!**_

Each successive chant increased higher in intensity. The crowd begged and pleaded for him to fight once more.

"Wha-wha-WHAT IN THE WORLD HAVE YOU DONE!"

The outburst came from his opponent. He may have forgotten to deal with her, but his mercy had already been given to the dogs.

The collector had come for her debt.

Takumi turned away from the still flying, still sputtering, girl in blue. After making his way to his guardian motorcycle, he pressed hard on the gas cap. Surprising the audience once more when the metal behemoth folded back into its vehicle form, Takumi wrenched the left throttle away from the triple-tree. The iridescent threads snaked onto the handle, and form a crimson edge three-fourths his size.

"Well, that's new," he chuckled to himself. Content with the weapon in his left, he pointed the red saber at Cecilia and spoke again.

"Hey, Alcott, you know what?"

She didn't utter a word.

"What did you say, 'more than four'? Well, jokes on you.

I only need _**one**__._"

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

I'm bored.

I'm _booored.._

_So bored._

Like, being on the run totally sucks. I can't get any good food, or the latest K-Drama news from my pals, and I can't even get any mani-pedis! Sitting here in front of a computer all just _kills_ me (well, not really, but even super-geniuses need to do other thing).

Even the plan was ruined! Years of sweat and icky work away from super-kawaii Houki and Chi-chan ruined.

Well, at least 'lil Ic-chan's still in the mix.

And last but not least, my new BFF, Tac-chan!

Or was it Tak-kun?

I turn my head back to the second monitor, that showed the match between Tak-kun and that annoying British girl. Seriously, I barely have any time to do cool things now that I have some new toys to work with.

Like setting up Houki and Ic-chan!

I hear a few trackers and devices go _**BWEEP BWEEP **_all of a sudden. Oh, those? Those are for Tak-kun. I'm so smart; he doesn't even know they're there.

Higher and higher they get. On the screen, I hear the crowd cheer.

Huh, that's funny. He should've lost already, so little Ik-kun can come back into the fold. You're so full of surprises Tak-kun.

Wait, is that a robot?

"_Squee. _It's a new toy!"

As I type furiously trying to figure out where he got that cool thing from, a high pitched hum emanated from a few tools. It goes higher and higher until…

In a flash of smoke and powder, they ignite.

How in the world did that happen?

The screen bathed the room in red light. On it, Takumi steps out in-

Hold up. What the _fuck_ is he wearing?

"Well aren't you _full _of surprises, Takumi…"

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

The ground cracked as he tensed his legs for battle.

He flicked his right hand.

In a split second, he kicked off the earth. Where he stood was a deep, and wide, crater.

Takumi accelerated and accelerated; his speed going faster and faster. Normal people, even in the I.S., would have crashed into the wall, with the insane maneuvers that were performed.

Not Takumi. He had tapped into the Wolf. His senses sharpened, and he used all functions to control his I.S.

Cecilia fired and fired, without the grace of before. She was panicking, Takumi could feel. She trembled as he zigged and zagged around her.

The world was in slow motion as Takumi put all thrusters in reverse and released air-brakes. The beat of the sonic boom in reverse sent the rest of the drones spinning wildly.

With the bits out of the way, Takumi boosted at her, his saber in a thrusting position.

Before her shield was pierced, Cecilia made a quick dodge. Her eyes went wide as she went for her nearest weapon that surprisingly, wasn't her rifle.

The one combat knife she carried nearly nailed Takumi's helmet.

_Nearly._

He turned his face to side, allowing for the length to come across the front. The teeth of his helm opened in fury, clamping down on the titanium alloy bolster.

_**CRUNCH!**_

_**SNAP!**_

That was the sound of metal teeth eating away at her blade. Most of the shards fell to the ground. The rest, they vaporized in his maw.

"_What, what are you…"_

Takumi let go of his saber. The Autovajin caught it before it sunk into the ground.

"_**WHAT ARE YOU!"**_

He floated upwards, high above Cecilia. Takumi reached for his belt, and slid off a small chip. His other hand removed a stubby flashlight from the side. Flipping the chip like a coin, tendrils of electricity buzzed from his belt, to the chip, and onto a slot on the flashlight. The chip and flashlight came together violently, and screwed onto a hole on Takumi's right.

Takumi flicked his wrist.

"_**EXCEED CHARGE."**_

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

"Yes, you were disqualified."

Before Takumi could make another snark in response, he was cut off again by Chifuyu.

"Stop. Right there. First off, I'm not even going to count the secret robot, _thing, _that helped you out, but on the grounds that you…"

He tried his absolute hardest to give a damn; to allow one single iota of brain-power to listen to her words. Needles upon needles made their way into his skull, and he couldn't do jack-shit about them; his arms wouldn't move. He motioned for Yamada to _bring him some fucking water_, and she complied, in the meekly fashion she always did.

Serves her r-…ight?

He shook his head, doing his best to squeeze out the pain. Takumi was tired, so tired. His jaw went slack before he noticed Chifuyu standing over him.

"Did you even hear the last part about unregistered weaponry? No? You know what, we'll talk about this later."

Chifuyu called over her green-haired assistant, whispered in her ear, and both left.

Like before, Ichika and Houki waited in the hangar with him. When Takumi flew back into the bay, he was greeted with a bone crushing bear-hug for his troubles, a slap on the back, and hearty congratulations for the extreme prejudice he displayed in the battle. Houki wouldn't step within a meter's distance; like she knew there was something deeper at work than simply a First Shift. She would be dealt with later.

"Hey man, get over here. Help me to my bed."

The first battle had ended.

It would not be the last.

Φ

* * *

><p>Φ<p>

The scalding water purified me.

_Rinse Hair. Condition_

Yet even the memories can't be washed away by the steam in the shower. I shivered as I remembered.

So foolish, so foolish. I was so naïve, so childish. I went into the battle, intent to win…

…And it was not worth it.

Yes, I won. Yes, I became class representative, but dare I say it; I regret my actions.

I was so terrified. _Yes, _I, Cecilia Alcott, had been terrified, not because of my opponents weapons, but of his strength.

_He consumed my combat knife! He __**ate **__it!_

My skills, honed to the highest point my nation could so far offer, was utterly decimated by his tenacity. His blade cut through every salvo I threw at him.

"_**EXCEED CHARGE"**_

I fought long and hard to keep the bile in my throat from escaping. My knees already buckled, sending me crashing to the marble floor. By the time I swallowed my vomit back down, I was trembling.

"_**EXCEED CHARGE"**_

_The mechanical voice echoed throughout the stadium. I had no missiles, and no bits left. That wouldn't stop me._

_I will win._

_The red streams on the Dog's body sent a pulse to his leg, and to the small contraption strapped to it. What such a tiny thing would do, I wondered, but I wouldn't take chances._

_He flew higher above, all the way into the stadium's barrier, and kicked off of it, spinning into a flip._

_The targeting sensors managed to lock onto him, the first time since his First Shift._

_He was in a flying kick, and I in position to shoot._

_A blazing light, faster than I could will the boosters to dodge, burst from his leg. It expanded to insane proportions; a drill of searing energy._

_My rifle was ready, and I pulled the trigger._

_He dematerialized into his attack._

_I pulled again. And again. And again. It didn't occur to me I hadn't actually pulled the trigger._

_The whirling dervish sped closer; it was an omen._

_I… couldn't move. I was stuck. I had resigned myself for death._

_When the attack was so close I had been blinded by the light, I closed my eyes._

_But, when I opened them, I was alive._

_Why?_

_**WHY?**_

_**WHY?!**_

_Was I too pitiful to be defeated? Am I so weak it didn't matter?_

_Why?_

_Why did he save me?_

"_Because you're still a person."_

_What?_

_The face I made while being cradled in his arms must have amused him, so he spoke again._

"_As much as you piss me off, I'm not cruel enough to kill you. Now get off. You're heavy."_

The rest of the events just sped by, though I managed to catch that I won the match.

How shameful. It was clear I was thoroughly beaten in combat, yet they insult me with a hollow victory.

"_Are you okay?"_

He called me after the match, and asked me if I was okay.

I turned off the water.

Takumi Inui: Age eighteen. Male.

I thought those were all that defined him.

I was wrong, and I paid the price.

_Takumi Inui, who are you?_

Φ

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**A/N:**

**So here's the completed chapter ladies and gents. An extra 2K words. To tell you the truth, I was really stuck on writing this piece. I tried very hard though, and hopefully I can get a quality chapter up soon again. Thank you for all your support guys, and please, Review.**

_**-Tethriot.**_


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